Satellite imagery has many uses in the modern world. The study of weather, geology and numerous other scientific areas can be further advanced with the assistance of satellite imagery. Satellite imagery can also form a valuable tool in connection with the performance of intelligence gathering.
Intelligence gathering on the basis of aerial viewing is a technique that is well over a century old. However, with the advancement of technology, the ability to obtain useful views of the ground from higher and higher altitudes has also improved. The desire to move to higher altitudes has been driven by the desire to remain both undetected and safe while conducting surveillance. With satellite imagery, image data can be gathered with relatively little risk to the assets gathering the data and without any noticeable indication to the party being monitored that active monitoring is occurring. Thus, the use of satellite imagery for intelligence gathering continues to be an important endeavor.
However, as the ability to obtain high resolution images of objects on the ground improves, the amount of data that must be analyzed and the complexity associated with analyzing the data also increases. Thus, it is necessary to develop techniques for analyzing the massive amounts of high resolution data in a way that can enhance the value of the results of the analysis.